Spills and messes are a natural part of life. Kids, pets, clumsiness, and life in general can all contribute to dirt and grime in your home – it’s just a fact.

You might be surprised to learn there are plenty of homemade cleaning products that can come to your rescue. If you’re looking to save money and create your own natural cleaning products, read on. We’re going to look at some of the best DIY cleaning products you’ll find in your home’s cupboards.

Must-have natural cleaning essentials

We’ve rounded up a list of the best low cost natural cleaners to get your place looking just as shiny and clean as those expensive products would. You’ll probably have most of these items in your home already:

• Baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) – creates a great cream cleanser when mixed with water as a thick paste. Baking soda works best on grease, animal mess, and proteins. It’s only a bit abrasive, so it can scour surfaces without you needing to worry about it scratching. It’s also a natural deodoriser.
• Chlorine bleach – known for its potent disinfectant properties. This solution is as cheap as chips, and a little goes a long way. If you’re looking for a gentler solution, hydrogen peroxide can be an effective alternative.
• Lemon juice and peel – all citrus makes an excellent disinfectant.
• Bar and liquid castile soap – the ultimate cheap and effective cleanser.
• Olive oil – the perfect homemade furniture polish, also used to loosen up grease, grime and stains on surfaces. Olive oil isn’t just for creating delicious food!
• Coarse salt – an effective yet gentle scouring agent. It also helps boost cleaning power in other home cleaning agents like laundry soap, dish soap, vinegar, washing soda and baking soda,
• Dishwashing liquid – not just useful for cleaning dishes. Dish soap is one of the most underrated cleaning items in your cupboards. When handling any products in the detergent aisle, make sure you wear gloves if you have sensitive skin (e.g. laundry detergent, dish soap, castile soap etc.)
• Rubbing alcohol – has many uses in household cleaning, from removing stains and sticky residue to streak-free cleaning. It’s an excellent disinfectant and can even create hand sanitiser,
• White vinegar – for shine and cleaning pretty much anything. As a mild acid, it works on alkaline substances by inhibiting mould, dissolving scale and cutting soap scum. You should never use vinegar on stone surfaces such as marble, granite, aluminium or cast iron; the acid in the vinegar can strip or damage these surfaces.
• Essential oils – naturally antibacterial essential oils sanitise your home and leave it smelling delicious too. Scents of lavender oil, eucalyptus oil, orange oil and lemon oil can all be added to solutions to enhance their fragrance. They’re especially effective when added to vinegar to reduce the ammonia smell.
• Borax – an alkali that works well for cutting oil, grease and dirt.
• Tea towels and rags – much cheaper than paper towels or disposable wipes.
• An empty spray bottle – great to have on hand for any DIY cleaning solutions. Anyone who loves natural cleaning knows that these are a staple item to have on hand. Glass bottles work best for acidic cleaners or anything alkali (e.g. vinegar solutions, borax)

Homemade cleaning solutions

Every household has a few go-to cleaners. The trusty spray bottle of all-purpose cleaner, paste cleaner, glass cleaner, disinfectant, dishwasher powder and laundry powder all make up the staple household cleaning products we rely on to keep our homes hygienic and sparkling. To save you time and money, we’re letting you in on our secret recipes for these alternative all natural homemade cleaners.

Homemade all purpose cleaner

This homemade all purpose cleaner is your ideal solution for all kinds of cleaning jobs. It’s just like a homemade spray and wipe but without the hefty price tag. This is non toxic and safe to use on most surfaces – from scrubbing stainless steel sinks to becoming a toilet bowl cleaner.

• 2 tsp liquid castile soap
• 20 drops citrus essential oil – we used 10 drops lemon essential oil and 10 drops orange essential oil
• 10 drops peppermint essential oil

Pour all ingredients in a clean spray bottle (500ml) and top up with water. Shake gently to mix. And then, as they say – spray and walk away!

Disinfectant and glass cleaner spray

King of the homemade cleaners. Perfect for cleaning windows and mirrors and disinfecting hard surfaces in kitchens, bathrooms and around the home. It even makes an excellent homemade window cleaner. Antibacterial sprays are more in use than ever these days after the emergence of COVID-19, so add this natural cleaning solution to your artillery.

• 2 cups water
• ½ cup of white vinegar
• ¼ cup rubbing alcohol
• A few drops of your favourite essential oil

Pour all ingredients into a spray bottle, spray onto the surface and wipe clean quickly with a dry cloth to avoid streaks.

Laundry powder

Add this non toxic mixture to your next wash cycle for clean and fresh clothes.

• 1 bar of soap, grated
• ¾ cup borax or washing soda
• ½ cup of baking soda
• 10 drops eucalyptus essential oil
• 10 drops lavender essential oil

Pour all ingredients into a food processor. Mix ingredients to a fine powder, then transfer to a sealed container or jar. Use 2-3 tbsp per full washing load.

Paste cleaner

Great natural cleaning power for removing built-up scum in your bath, oven, or tiles.

• ½ cup baking soda
• 3-4 tbsp liquid castile soap
• 5 drops tea tree essential oil
• 5 drops lemon essential oil

Mix baking soda, liquid soap, and essential oils, stirring together until your ingredients form a paste. Dip a soft cloth into the mixture and then scrub the surface before rinsing with water.

Dishwasher powder

Add this lovely smelling cleaning powder to your next rinse cycle for sparkling clean dishes.

• 1 ½ cups baking soda
• ½ cup citric acid
• 1/3 cup fine sea salt
• 10 drops lemon essential oil
• 10 drops orange essential oil

Mix ingredients well, then store in a sealed container or jar. Use 1 tbsp per load.

Fabric softener

There’s nothing as delectable as slipping into lovely, soft, fabric softened sheets. Try this quick recipe that uses baking soda and vinegar for a cost-effective option. Pour ¼ cup of this directly into the washer with your load of laundry.

• 1 cup warm water
• ½ cup of baking soda
• ½ cup white vinegar
• 5-10 drops essential oils

Homemade floor cleaners

Kiwis are all about the great outdoors. We spend the summer months at the beach and our winters on the sports fields. Safe to say, we’re not afraid to get a little dirty. Whether it’s filthy shoes, muddy paw prints, or just general muck, our floors often hold weeks’ worth of grime. And when unforeseen disasters like spilled red wine happen, it’s a race to clean it ASAP – or else end up looking at it for the next ten years! We’re big fans of all natural floor cleaner. Here are a few of our favourite recipes.

Homemade cleaner – hard surface floors

This simple floor cleaner works brilliantly for mopping floors without the extra cost involved in specialised floor cleaners.

1. Add 1 tbsp of liquid soap and 1 tbsp of vinegar to a 2L bucket of warm water. If you like, you can also add a few drops of essential oil (tea tree oil and lavender essential oil are some of our favourites) for a pleasant scent.
2. Mix and mop floors! If you don’t have a mop, you can also use a clean cloth.
3. Rinse and wring out your mop frequently until clean.
4. Works best on: Shiny surfaces like tiles, linoleum, vinyl, wood floors.

Homemade carpet cleaner – stain remover

We told you that vinegar could clean pretty much anything, and we weren’t joking. It really is one of the best DIY cleaners, including being one of a few great home remedies for cleaning carpets. Try this method using homemade cleaner to spot-clean stubborn stains on your carpets (think spills from wine, tomato sauce, coffee, tea, chocolate, berries, and soda). It’s made using only dishwasher detergent and white vinegar. This same solution works well for pet accidents too.

1. Mix ¼ teaspoon of liquid dishwasher detergent (must be translucent) into 1 cup of lukewarm water.
2. Mix 1 cup white vinegar with 2 cups of water.
3. Dip a clean cloth into your first detergent mixture and apply to the stain. Never pour your solution directly onto your carpet. You could also pour the mixture into an empty spray bottle and mist it lightly onto the stain.
4. Dab repeatedly, then press your damp cloth on the stain for a few seconds.
5. Wait 15 minutes.
6. Repeat the same method with your vinegar and water and wait a further 15 minutes.
7. Rinse by blotting with a rag soaked in warm water. Wait until the carpet dries completely.
8. Repeat these steps until the stain is gone, then blot dry.

More easy household cleaners

Homemade shower cleaner

Showers are notorious for having built-up soap residue. Luckily, we have a fantastic homemade soap scum remover recipe to share with you. Spray these super inexpensive ingredients onto your shower, and it’s unlikely you’ll even need to scrub!

1. Combine equal amounts of white vinegar and dishwashing detergent in a spray bottle.
2. Give the mixture a good shake.
3. Spray onto your shower or tub.
4. Let it sit for about 10 to 30 minutes, then wipe with a damp sponge or clean cloth.
5. Rinse with water.

Homemade toilet cleaner

Everyone knows that toilets can be high bacteria areas. It’s no surprise that they might need a more thorough clean than other rooms of your home! But that doesn’t mean that cleaning your loo needs to be complicated. Borax is the most efficient homemade cleaning product to clean your toilet bowl. This exceptional alkali will effectively clean hard water stains in your toilet bowl. When paired with vinegar to create this toilet bowl cleaner, your dunny will be sparkling in no time!

1. Pour ¼ cup borax into your toilet bowl and swirl around with a toilet brush.
2. Add 1 cup white vinegar and leave the mixture to sit in the bowl for about 20 minutes.
3. After 20 minutes, scrub the toilet with the brush thoroughly.

Homemade degreaser

Degreaser is your kitchen’s best friend. It’s essential for removing grease, oils and grime – all of which build up oh so easily around your stove, oven, and cooking utensils. We’ve all spent far too long scrubbing an oven tray in a fruitless effort to remove a caked-on mess!

1. Create a paste cleaner mixing baking soda and water. The standard ratio is about 2 tablespoons of baking soda to 1 teaspoon of water for your baking soda solution.
2. Add a few drops of orange or lemon essential oil. If you don’t have either, lemon juice is a good substitute.
3. After spreading the paste over the dirty surface, let it sit for a few minutes until dry.
4. Lightly spray white vinegar over the paste to make it fizz – this makes it even easier to clean.
5. Scrub using a soft sponge, making sure to rub gently so you don’t scratch the surface.

Homemade mould cleaner

It’s an annoying fact of life that many Kiwi homes have to deal with dreaded mould and mildew at some stage or another. With our humidity and rainfall, these pesky problems can rear their ugly heads when we least expect it. If you’re looking for a solution to clean up unwanted mould, try this very simple all natural recipe:

1. Fill a spray bottle with white distilled vinegar.
2. Add a drop of two of tea tree oil.
3. Spritz the affected area.
4. Let it sit for about half an hour, then rinse off the area with warm water.
5. Scrub off with a cloth if it needs some extra elbow grease.

Homemade drain cleaner

Is there anything more annoying than a clogged drain? Stinky, inconvenient and just plain gross, the infamous clogged drain is one of the banes of life’s existence. This simple solution will help. Pop this down your drains regularly and you’ll find that they flow much better in the long run.

1. Sprinkle ¼ to ½ cup of baking soda down your drain.
2. Follow with ¼ cup of white vinegar.
3. Let this bubbling mixture sit for an hour or so (a few hours extra won’t hurt), then pour boiling hot water down your drain to rinse.
4. Repeat as needed.

Homemade air freshener

A fancy name brand air freshener can set you back anywhere between $20 and $80. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with indulging once in a while, this simple recipe can smell just as impressive and will only cost a fraction of the price! Try our special recipe below if you have guests coming over and want to make your home smell divine. You can change up the citrus and herbs to create your own favourite scents. This is a great recipe to whip up if you need to remove odours from around your house.

1. Place 2-3 sliced citrus fruits (we love orange, lemon and limes), a handful of fresh herbs (basil, rosemary, and lavender are great) into a medium saucepan with 2-4 cinnamon sticks and 1 teaspoon of cloves.
2. Add water to fill the saucepan to about three-quarters full.
3. Bring to boil.
4. Reduce to a simmer and infuse your home with a naturally fresh and incredible aroma.

Top cleaning tips 

We’ve rounded up tips on natural and low-cost cleaners which get your place looking shiny at a fraction of the price of expensive cleaning products.

• Baking soda can replace cream cleaners on benches, ovens, baths and sinks. Just mix a tablespoon or so with a few drops of water to make a paste.
• Bleach is cheap, and a little goes a long way! Dilute with water (check the directions on the bottle), and use it in the loo and the bathroom.
• Put a couple of tablespoons of baking soda in an open container in the fridge to get rid of smells
• Stinky insinkerator? Whiz up a few ice cubes and lemon or orange peels. The exploding ice will blast off any food particles, and the citrus disinfects and clears away any lingering odours.
• Bar soap is a lot cheaper, and lasts a lot longer then expensive liquid handwash and body wash. And it gets you just as clean.
• Spray cleaners don’t have to be expensive! Mix equal parts dishwashing liquid and white vinegar in a spray bottle and top up with water. This mix will degrease and shine. Use it everywhere you would a spray cleaner.
• Wipe mirrors and glass with plain white vinegar – you’ll be amazed at the shine!
• Clean out the fridge with warm water and vinegar – you don’t want harsh chemical cleaners near your food!
• Keep a supply of tea towels and rags on hand for mopping up spills – you’ll save heaps on paper towels.
• Flat cola? Tip it down the loo! It’s acidic enough to make a great toilet cleaner.
• Vinegar’s perfect for cleaning just about everything. If you can’t stand the smell, it’s easy to make your own scented vinegar. Just pop a few orange or lemon peels, or a handful of lavender in the vinegar bottle. After a week or so, you’ll have a wonderfully scented, homemade natural cleaner!